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How To Start Restaurant Business In Nigeria (Buka/Joint)

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How To Start Restaurant Business In Nigeria (Buka/Joint)
typical restaurant setting

How profitable is Restaurant business? Food business is highly profitable, I used the word ‘highly’ because saying profitable alone might be an understatement. Food is regarded as the number one basic need of man amongst shelter and clothing. Whether you are fasting or busy you will still eat after all so nobody can escape not eating food.

Because of the rush in life many people cannot spare time to cook, some can’t even create time to go to the market to buy foodstuff not to talk of cooking. For some people it is because of the nature of their job while others it’s because they are damn too lazy.

Buying of already prepared food from buka cuts across all status; married and the unmarried. How about students, ah! let’s not go there we have plenty of them that form aje butter.
There are many names given to food business, here are some of the names; restaurant, food vendors, mama put, buka and joint, eatery, canteen. The way it is operated determines the name.

Restaurant business in Nigeria, has been in existence right from time immemorial because of the increase in knowledge and sophistication it has been taken to another level.

Food business, restaurant business
Pix naira land

Mr. Biggs started with snacks, ice cream and drinks but now they have included village kitchen where they serve local delicacies. Almost all the fast food joints are converting to restaurant. What is trending now is amala joint so you can carve a niche for your restaurant business.

Restaurant business is one business that you can start and grow within a short time. So many people that started as mama put have upgraded. It is very easy to start and grow but not easy to manage, it requires your time, energy, intelligence and the will power.

Things needed to Start Restaurant Business

  • Space
  • Utensils ( pots,kettles, frying pan etc)
  • Cutlery (spoons, forks, knife etc)
  • Tables
  • Chairs
  • Table mats
  • Hand towel
  • Toothpick/container
  • Containers for spices; ground pepper, garlic, salt etc.
  • Soap
  • Stove or gas cooker
  • Fridge/Freezer
  • Buckets
  • Bowls
  • Scapula
  • Fan/Air conditioner
  • Television or radio

7 steps to start Restaurant Business in Nigeria

  • Location
  • space/shop
  • training
  • restaurant business plan
  • neatness
  • capital
  • staff

Location

It is ideal to situate your restaurant in a visible and populated area. You can establish it in a market place, school environment, motor park, office area especially where many offices are located example banks. Others are commercial centres, institutions etc.

Shop

You have to rent or get a shop according to the type of restaurant business you are setting and the capital at your disposal. If it is executive restaurant you can get a big and spacious shop so that you can arrange the chairs in a manner that they won’t be too close to each other.

Have you visited a buka before and you have to squeeze yourself to pass a table to your own, it is what many people frown at. You need a store in your shop where you will be keeping washed equipment and foodstuffs.

There should be a space for washing of utensils and where prepared food are kept for dishing. A canter should be built if your customers will have to place order and pick the foods by themselves.

Capital

You have to get reasonable amount of money at hand before commencing your buka and joint business. Sew your cloth according to the size of your cloth, that’s actually an adage that make sense big time.

Start with what you have and grow it or get a loan. Before getting loans write out your restaurant business plan after taking feasibility study in restaurants around your area.. Another way of getting starting capital is to ask friends and family for help.

Training

Even if you are establishing your eatery business for people to manage for you, still you have to get some knowledge on how buka business is done. It will help you know what to expect and what it entails. Go to a restaurant that is viable and get some training or you employ qualified caterer and smartly learn from them.

Employ Good Hands

One of the things that will keep people coming to your restaurant is when you serve delicious meals. Employ at least a caterer to take care of the cooking then employ other hands to help in both the cooking and serving. As I said before restaurant business is very stressful, you can’t do it alone except when you are starting or you have but few targeted audience.

Depending on the size and how busy your restaurant is employ not less than 2 persons for food service. You won’t like to keep people waiting for to long, before serving them food. If you are doing that then you are loosing customers because so many people can’t bear it.

Neatness

Naturally, people are attracted to good things and nice environment. Set up your buka and joint business in an organise way. The environment should be neat and smell good. You will not want people to be fighting with flies while eating. If possible, sew uniforms for your staff; appron and hair cover.

Cleanliness is said to be next to godliness so take this very serious in your canteen business.

Restaurant business plan

What people succeed in business fast is having a blue print. It will be ideal to write a restaurant business plan so as to be guided in the business idea.

Restaurant business, food business, buka and joint, canteen business, mama put

The Cost of Setting Up Restaurant Business

The cost of setting up a restaurant business depends.on what you have at hand and the size you are looking at. For a small restaurant #500,000 can start the business outside shop and non variable items. But whereby you have to buy everything including freezer then you need about #2,000,000 for a start.

How Profitable is Restaurant Business

It is very lucrative. You can make not less than #50,000 to #100,000 daily on food business. For rice alone you can make more or the same amount you bought it. If you sell variety of foods then you are made. By the time you add other things like the sell of drinks etc. You will count your blessings.

To increase profit, buy food on wholesale.

Foods To Cook

  • Rice and stew
  • Jollof rice
  • Coconut rice
  • Fried rice
  • Plantain pottage or fried
  • Beans
  • Eba and soap
  • Pounded yam and soup
  • Semo and soup or stew
  • Moi moi

Make different delicacies such as amala, ekpang nkukwo, edikang ikong soup, white soup, ohia soup, gbegiri, miea nkuker, twoo etc. Sell othervthings like assorted drinks, snacks, water, boiled eggs, fried meat, chicken and so on.

Marketing

Food doesn’t really need much advert, a good food will advertise itself. People that have tasted and enjoyed your food will direct others to your shop.

You can advertise on social media such as Facebook, Instagram etc if you want to capture a wider audience.

Add food delivery business to your buka and joint because people that can’t go out especially bankers now order for home delivery.

Conclusion

Start your restaurant business today don’t wait until you have plenty money. You can start from your home then upgrade as you expand.

The things that will make your business outstanding and draw more customers to you are:

  • Neatness
  • Good food
  • Price
  • Good customer care
  • Availability
  • Serve hot food

People should not come and be waiting for food to be ready. Wake up on time and cook the foods. You and your staff should be friendly to customers, people love such places. The price should be moderate so that you can capture plenty customers. The more the customers the more money you make.

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15 COMMENTS

  1. Thanks very much for this information. I am framing of owning an hotel in the future, but I will be starting with a restaurant first. I find this information handy.

    • Nice idea, I work in a kitchen in a hotel,and am telling you the profit is huge, my boss pays the hotel 4 million monthly and still makes her own good profit, I have the knowledge of how it’s been run and am planning on starting up my own restaurant soon

  2. Thank you for your lectures I really learn alot , but how much do I really need to start up a small mama put restaurant

  3. THANKS SO MUCH FOR D LECTURES I REALLY LRARNT ALOT, AM ABOUT TO START A CANTEEN HAVE GOTTING A SHOP JUST TO SET IT UP NOW I WISH MY SELF BEST OF LUCK

    • I am happy for you dear and wish you the best. Congratulations
      Don’t forget to tell us your success story so others can be encouraged

  4. Wow this is great like seriously I have always been dreaming to own a very good restaurant but am just scared and don’t know how to go about it as it is my first step to take but with this mother LLY or moderated pice of advice am their already so thank you so much ma God Bless you 🙏

  5. yes ma , i am framing of having a commercial restaurance and even get license and permit from the government. so my question is that like how much will be enough to start the large scale business?

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